In the 1970s, when the United Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) was faced with bringing mission personnel home from international service due to funding, the Synod of the Trinity said, “Don’t do that without first letting us know.”

Now, four decades later, 22 former Moderators of the General Assemblies of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and its predecessor churches have written an open letter asking for fervent prayer and sacrificial giving to meet a funding gap of $925,000 in 2016 that could widen to $4.5 million in 2017, resulting in the recall of approximately 40 of the 162 mission co-workers.

“The messages of support we’ve received from across the church and from our partners around the world have been an inspiration to all of us who are working very hard to meet this challenge,” says Hunter Farrell, director, Presbyterian World Mission.

“We’ve been at this for 178 years,” says Linda B. Valentine, executive director of the Presbyterian Mission Agency. “It takes the support of the whole church—individuals, families, congregations, ministries, networks and friends working together—to transform lives. There are 94 million people in the world today who are members of churches started by the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) This is a legacy, a responsibility, and hope for the future that our witness will continue.”